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Alyse Altenburg, a master’s student in Applied Sociology and a Shriver Center Peaceworker Fellow, has been selected as a Presidential Management Fellow (PMF) for the Class of 2014. Altenburg is the only finalist from UMBC. PMF is a prestigious two-year paid government fellowship sponsored by the Office of Personnel Management for recent graduate students who seek a two-year fellowship in a United States government agency. Following the conclusion of the two year fellowship, PMFs have the opportunity to convert their fellowship into a full-time permanent position. Alyse was one of 600 finalists out of 7,000 applicants.  She is originally from… Continue Reading Alyse Altenburg, Sociology, Named 2014 Presidential Management Fellow

Tomiko Shine ’14, anthropology, won first place in the National Council for Black Studies (NCBS) undergraduate paper competition for her paper, “The Lens of Blackness: An Anthro-Political Perspective.” When Tomiko moved to Baltimore, she noticed through her work with youth and mothers in Baltimore City that many of their fathers or husbands were incarcerated. After seeing the impact that incarceration had on black families and communities, Tomiko responded by becoming a court advocate and attended court with youth who had charges that carried jail time. “I wanted to understand this phenomenon of the impact of incarceration on black family and… Continue Reading Tomiko Shine ’14, Anthropology, Wins First Place in National Council for Black Studies Paper Competition

As injured survivors of the Boston bombing start their long and challenging road to recovery, Washington D.C.’s WTOP interviewed UMBC’s Seth D. Messinger yesterday on the topic of rehabilitation following traumatic limb loss. Messinger, an associate professor of anthropology who works primarily with service members, notes, “the question is whether or not civilian patients are going to be able to have the kind of time in therapy or in rehab that military patients take for granted.” He also highlights the financial hardship that the recovery process might place on victims and their families, remarking, “It’s not only the individual who’s… Continue Reading Seth Messinger, Sociology and Anthropology, on WTOP

Today’s Boston Globe published a letter by Seth D. Messinger, associate professor in UMBC’s Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology, in the opinion series “Voices on the Bombings.” Messinger, a medical anthropologist, is an expert on recovery from traumatic limb loss, specifically among military service members. In “The Need for Strong Rehabilitation Services” he writes, Military patients with traumatic limb loss take part in a comprehensive rehabilitation program that provides them with surgical and medical care, physical and occupational therapy, and a wide variety of prosthetic limbs as well as opportunities to use them in a diverse array of sporting and… Continue Reading Seth Messinger, Sociology and Anthropology, in The Boston Globe

The Washington Blade today highlights a talk presented by Ann Christine Frankowski, associate research scientist and associate director of UMBC’s Center for Aging Studies, and Imani Woody, of Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE), on challenges facing older LGBT people. Frankowski’s work examines autonomy, independence and freedom for older adults, with a focus on minorities, especially sexual minorities. The article notes: An estimated 1.4 to 3.8 million LGBT people in the U.S. are over the age of 65 with the number expected to double by 2030. In pursuing her research, Frankowski found that “there is no discussion of sexuality,… Continue Reading Ann Christine Frankowski, Center for Aging Studies, in the Washington Blade

UMBC’s Center for Aging Studies has received a 17-month grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) to expand the research project “Autonomy in Assisted Living: A Cultural Analysis.” This grant extends a four-year ethnographic study of autonomy to include dementia care units affiliated with three of the sites in the parent grant. The Principal Investigators of this research are Professor Robert L. Rubinstein and Associate Research Scientist Ann Christine Frankowski. The research team includes ethnographer Amanda D. Peeples and GRA Colleen R. Bennett.

Seth D. Messinger, associate professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, commented in today’s New York Times on the long-term process of recovering from limb loss, in the wake of Monday’s Boston Marathon bombings. Messinger told Times reporter James Dao that training for athletics gives amputees a clear way of measuring recovery incrementally. “Rehab for traumatic limb loss is not a short thing, and patients want to know what they have to do next,” he said. “A sports model offers people a set of stages. You’ll walk between parallel bars, then walk with canes, then learn to run.” He… Continue Reading Seth Messinger, Sociology and Anthropology, in the New York Times

Sigma Phi Omega (SPO) is the national academic honor society in gerontology, for professionals who work with or on behalf of older persons. The UMBC chapter of SPO, Delta Lambda, has been tremendously active this year with volunteer activities, nurturing an ongoing relationship with Catholic Charities of Maryland, specifically two independent senior living apartment buildings near UMBC: DePaul House and St. Joachim House. Delta Lambda has been assisting Congregate Housing Services (CHS) with a project to interview residents about their personal journeys coming to live at DePaul and St. Joachim, as well as their experiences utilizing the CHS program. These… Continue Reading Gerontology Honor Society Gives Back to Local Seniors